Customer Reviews

Mascagni: Cavalleria rusticana / Leoncavallo: Pagliacci ~ Santini / von Matacic

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This recording is just brimming with excitement. Franco Corelli is phenomenal as both Turridu in Cav and Canio in Pagliacci. Mario Sereni gives a very excellent reading of Alfio, the jealous husband in Cavalleria Rusticana. Victoria De los Angeles is a very fine Santuzza, though, possibly, a bit to light voiced for the role. Though her interpretation may not be as interesting as Maria Callas, Lucine Amara turns in a very credible and fine performance as Nedda, the unfaithful wife of Canio. Tito Gobbi is probably, to my ears, the finest and most believable Tonio on record, realizing both the lyric and dramatic moments in the score, flawlessly. Gobbi's "Prologo" is equal to none in this performance, singing the interpolated High A flat magnificently in this recording (he sings the written F in the Callas/Di Stefano recording). Corelli, especially in the I Pagliacci, simply exudes animal magnetism and his voice is so virile and fresh. This recording (the Pagliacci) was the one that heralded in the great Corelli to the American public as this was his debut recording to a major recording company. His "Vesti la giubba" and "No Pagliaccio non son" are both show stoppers. Both Santini, in Cavalleria Rusticana, and Matacic, in I Pagliacci, conduct very exciting and energized performances. This recording has all the spark and excitement of a live performance, but without "theater noise". This recording IS verissimo opera at its very finest. The stereo sound is excellent. Any lover of true Italian opera should own this recording

This is one of the finest I Pagliacci of the stereo era. The star is obviously the great Franco Corelli, whose voice is nothing short of a miracle. His Canio is very humane and moving. Lucine Amara is only O.K., but Tito Gobbi is a real presence as Tonio. The late great conductor Lovro von Matacic makes everything that can be done for this opera. EMI of course has the earlier Di Stefano/ Callas recording, the classic version of I Pagliacci, but this 1961 recording is important and well worth having. If you want digital sound, the finest I Pagliacci is a BMG recording featuring Vladimir Atlantov, Bernd Weikl and Lucia Popp. It was recorded by Eurodisc in the mid-eighties and now is in the Ariola budget label. It is certainly superior to both the Domingo and the Pavarotti more recent efforts.

Corelli is a God: never has anyone had a command of Bel Canto
technique like him. Some complain that he is loud and vulgar. Well,
that is a complaint that has been made about Verdi, Italian Opera, and
Italian culture in general. I am in complete envy of anyone who might have heard him in the theater. Can you imagine what kind
of frisson this "loud and vulgar" voice could have created? Not to
mention his stunning sex appeal. THE tenor of this century, but
divine in a different way from Callas. His SINGING is the key to
his glory: completely free, squillo beyond human understanding, and
because of his completely free upper mechanism, his breath control
was simply stunning.

These recordings are must have-s: De los Angeles is a young, vulnerable Santuzza (unlike the dangerous reading that Callas gives it). Instead of perpetrating the death of Turridu, the Santuzza of de los Angeles seems to have stumbled innocently into the situation. Her disclosing of the affair of Turridu and Lola to Alfio is the hurt confession of a young girl, as opposed to the crafty reading that Callas
gives the scene. The conducting of Sabatini is urgent and propels the
drama forward. Cavalleria is a strange piece architecturally: it sometimes gives the impression of being an oratorio with its extended
orchestral passages and choruses. Of course, Corelli in the final
scene leave no piece of scenery un-chewed, but his noble tone makes
him a sympathetic Turridu. Unlike the Turridi-s of De Stefano and Pavarotti, Corelli turns Turridu into a confused adolescent, rather than a mature man making selfish choices.

As for Pagliacci: the Canio of Gobbi is searing in its intensity, and
the Nedda of Amara (again, compared to Callas, ALWAYS one
must compare to Callas) is youthful and rather un-complex, though
beautifully sung and completely convincing. Of course, Corelli is
THE Canio, brooding, sullen, frightening. He does not come across
as middle aged (Vickers), but a virile man in his prime, "fatto cornuto"
by his wife.

As recordings come and go in and out of print, snatch this up NOW.
I have 4 recordings of Cav/Pag: my understanding of these pieces would not really be complete without this one.

This double-recording of two very famous verismo-operas is absolutely stunning. For one it has the most beautiful, touching Santuzza in the velvety Victoria de los Angeles and the most erotic Turridu in the hot-blooded Franco Corelli. Victoria's Santuzza never screeches or sounds vulgar but is a wounded, loving soul crying for help. The incredible beauty of her "Voi lo sapete o mamma" is proof for how sublime "verismo" (This so often abused word) can be. Verismo is a type of opera, a unique style of singing, not tricks, gimmicks or mannerisms.
The Pagliacci with the fierce Amara and the unequalled Gobbi presents us one of the most intense Canios on disc. In short: Buy this and be floored by this beauty and drama!

If you need to show somebody WHY Franco Corelli was the most exciting tenor of the last half of the 20th century, just plop this CD in your player. Corelli is electrifying in both these operas and has a fine supporting cast (well except for the Nedda, but Pagliacci thankfully is an opera that won't be ruined if you have a so-so one). Gobbi is his typical creepy self and Sereni is manly. The conducting keeps things going at a great pace. The Cav is even better. De Los Angeles is a surprisingly good Santuzza.

This is Corelli at his best, with all of those spine-tingling "high" notes. There is a version of Cavalleria/Pagliacci(on 2 separate CDs)by Jussi Bjorling, my other favorite tenor, which serves as an interesting contrast to the Corelli version. I found the Corelli take to be the superior of the two, in this case, although there is little to fault in the Bjorling offerings.

This set of Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci has been assembled for Franco Corelli, as he stars in both. The set is recommended to listen to Corelli in controlled studio conditions, without background noise or the like, in two of his major roles. As it is well known by everyone who knows his singing, where other tenors struggle to solve the technical problems, he has taken a huge leap forward, using his technique for nuanced, meaningful interpretation. These recordings are very typical of his masterful art.

The conducting, choruses, orchestras, and the other singers are excellent: much care has obviously been taken to create two exquisite big pictures.

Victoria de Los Angeles is a very light lyric soprano, but the great surprise is that she sings Santuzza very well technically, therefore, this type of voice in the role becomes more than acceptable, it is interesting.

Tito Gobbi offers an outstanding performance of Tonio/Taddeo in Pagliacci, using all kinds of vocal emissions and effects to differentiate between Tonio, the "real life" character exhibiting the passion of the "monstrously" deformed man, and his character in the burlesque comedy, Taddeo, played on the stage of the theater within the theater.

I would rate this Cavalleria 6 stars if I could. Everything in this recording is at the top: Corelli in great voice and sensitivity, de los Angeles in brilliant voice, extremely convincing - a Santuzza simmering of jealousy, Sereni a formidable Alfio, great choir, orchestra and conducting. Not to be missed.
Sorry I cannot say the same about the enclosed Pagliacci. Corelli still has a very good 'No, Pagliaccio non son' and finale, and a good 'Vesti la giubba', but Gobbi is really struggling with his voice and the overall impression is of an oldish, "sail safely to the land" style.

Rudolf Bing once said that Franco Corelli, with his handsome look and grandiose voice, in his time was opera incarnated. Yes, after listening to this electrified version of Pagliacci, it would be hard to disagree. When you listen to it you actually can see the drama goes on. In the highlights Maestro von Matacic push the orchestra to the edge and Corelli gives his all. It's unbelievable.
It will be hard to find any other versions with more theatrical intensity. This is a firstchoice among all versions of Pagliacci.

The Cavalleria rusticana is not so good, it`s too unbalanced with bad sound. And I think the maincause for this is the mixing of two very different singers like de los Angeles and Corelli. Sounds like Corelli are standining twenty meters away from the microphone while she is just few centimeters away from it. And of course I don`t mean the intro for the tenor: ...O Lola..., that is sung off stage.
It is the Pagliacci I give five stars and three for the Cavalleria rusticana.

I read somewhere that Leonard Bernstein deplored Corelli's loud, blatant singing -- he was hardly alone at the time -- but the tenor's fans don't care. To them, he kills, as a previous reviewer excitedly declares. Hapily, Corelli is at his best in verismo, where vulgarity is the whole point. I was delighted with both Cav and Pag from the early Sixties (and not recorded as a pair). For musical valaues, the latter is much better. There's a real sense of theatricality, with Gobbi at his most searing, and von Matacic conducts beautifully, whereas the laissez-faire Santini is merely satisfactory.

Beyond his splendid instrument, Corelli didn't go in for the niceties of characterization: good looks and a clarion tenor were enough. So I don't hear the depth in Turridu's combination of bluster, suffering, and desperation that Domingo so memorably captures in his RCA account under Levine, still my favorite. As for de los Angeles, her Santuzza isn't a wounded animal trapped by despair and sexual jealousy (the Gramophone reviewer hit the nail on the head when he said that "the mildest among us would bite the ear of anyone who hurt her"). Her portrayal runs against type, sounding vulnerable and touching. I don't think that's quite right. Without rage and a reckless desire for revenge, Santuzza isn't Santuzza. But as pure singing de los Angeles is very affecting. If only she had taken the role of Nedda in Pagliacci, since the soprano who did, Lucina Amara, is pliant and forgettable. She has no sexual slyness or believable impetuousness. Her vocal timbre also sounds more mature than the character calls for.

Some critics have felt that this is a mismatch, a dodgy Cav yoked to a splendid Pag. But for me a merely serviceable Nedda and a lazy Santini even the odds. Those flaws aren't enough to demote this thoroughly enjoyable double bill.